Georgetown vs. Fordham

[moshei24]

Hi!

Long time no post. How are you guys?

Okay, so here's my issue.

I got into Georgetown off waitlist yesterday, and at the moment, they are out of scholarship funds, but some may open up in two weeks or so, and there would be a good chance I would get a $5-15K scholarship there. I don't know exactly, but the person I've been in contact with seems to like me; though, that's probably her job, but I think I've made the good impression needed for her to help me get some money there.

My other option is Fordham which offered me $25K of scholarship money. I'm going to try to negotiate that to $30K, now that I got into Georgetown. They wouldn't negotiate previously.

Basically, although I'm sure you figured out my question by now, where should I go? Is Georgetown worth full tuition? My life is in NYC, but my girlfriend insists I go to the best school I can and that I don't take our relationship into account when deciding. I'm not set on BigLaw, and I would like to do public service for a few years (and then possibly criminal defense), but I think LRAP requires you do ten years. Does anybody have advice on the matter? I really need some new angles on this issue. All help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks so much!

[Justin Eleff]

Let me preface the following by saying I very much believe my advice ranks toward the bottom of the factors you should consider here. I'm not putting myself down; it's just that you're looking at a hugely complicated, highly personal decision. It's possible that the best advice I could give you is to go with your gut.

That said, I did go to law school once upon a time, and thereafter I practiced law for several years. I did this in Florida, attending the University of Florida in Gainesville and then practicing in Tampa. My Florida-specific perspective is basically this: there are law firms at which having attended a state school with a strong alumni community is solid gold. I probably did as well in terms of job offers coming out of UF as I would have coming out of Harvard or anywhere else. It pays to be a Gator in Florida. But it does not pay nearly as handsomely (at most firms, anyway; there are exceptions) to be a Seminole or Hurricane, or to have come from one of the other local schools. Most firms rank graduates something like UF > Florida State or Stetson > Miami > everything else. This alone is hugely complicated, but the bigger point here is that the UF brand is a commodity. I don't know about the Fordham brand where you are. I mean that I don't know one way or the other.

Of course, you may know someone who works at a firm that loves Fordham graduates, and if that's the case it might well be a good thing for you to come through Fordham. Georgetown is a name, but it's kind of a weird name in the legal world. Know how people tell you a J.D. is always a good degree to have, even if you don't know what you want to do? That's largely a fiction; a J.D is a good degree to have IF YOU WANT TO PRACTICE LAW, but otherwise the thing is more prestigious than really useful. One notable exception to that rule, though: a Georgetown J.D. is a good degree to have -- perhaps the best one -- if you happen to want to pursue a career in politics. So I suppose what I'm saying is that I can't solve your dilemma, but I can make it more complicated for you.

First, think really hard about what you want to do coming out of school. Are you committed to the public-then-defense route you've mentioned? Might there be something else that does it for you? Working in public policy, perhaps? Anything else?

Then, think just as hard about whether Fordham vs. Georgetown makes a specific difference given that ultimate (intended) career path. And don't just ask us; ask people you know: people who practice law, people who do whatever else you might want to do, people perhaps especially who might one day be in position to hire you. Try to find someone better than me to bounce the question off of. Shouldn't be hard. Maybe you'll learn some dispositive Fordham vs. Georgetown nugget. Maybe you'll find a mentor. You almost certainly won't be turned away altogether, though. Ask the right questions and you'll find that most people are more than willing to talk about themselves.

Hope this helps.